


Pretty

by ReneeLaRoux



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Bisexual Arthur, Bottom Merlin, Crossdressing, Crossdressing Kink, Dress Up, Friends to Lovers, M/M, Makeup, Secrets, Top Arthur, Uther's A Dick, gay merlin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-27
Updated: 2018-12-27
Packaged: 2019-09-28 08:18:42
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,068
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17179277
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ReneeLaRoux/pseuds/ReneeLaRoux
Summary: Arthur discovers Merlin wearing women's clothing.





	Pretty

**Author's Note:**

> I have a major thing for men in lingerie, so this is just me living vicariously, ya feel? Probably not the best smut ever written, apologies in advance.

Arthur Pendragon was in a  _ mood _ . 

    He had just wasted the better part of an hour at his father's weekly family dinner, and all he had to show for it was an elevated blood pressure and a grumbly stomach. 

    It probably would have been an ordinary Friday night dinner if only Morgana had shown up. They always kept the conversations civil when all three Pendragons were present. When his older sister had blown them off with a vague last-minute text, however, Uther saw it as an opportunity to toss the gloves aside. And he certainly didn't hold back.

-     -     -     -     -

    “It's come to my attention that you are no longer seeing Vivian.” Uther watched Arthur over his glass of chardonnay. Arthur sighed.

    “I was never seeing Vivian, Father,” he said as calmly as possible. 

    “Well, why not? She was a perfectly lovely young woman, from a good family. Good connections.”

    “She just wasn't my type,” Arthur said quietly as Mrs. Murray, the cook, entered the dining room with the first course.

    “I thought women were part of your ‘type’?” Uther bit out.

    “Sometimes,” Arthur shot back. 

    “Come now, Arthur,” Uther paused to let Mrs. Murray set plates of salad before them. “It’s time you set aside that rebellious little phase and get serious about your future.”

    “I am serious about my future, Father. And I've told you before, my sexuality is not a phase.”

    “You’re a Pendragon, Arthur. You have a reputation, a family name to uphold! It’s time you settled down and found a good woman from a good family. Get married and have children to carry on the family name!”

    “And why can I not do that with a male partner? Same-sex marriage is legal and just as legitimate. I could have children by adoption, or even by a surrogate.”

    “That’s just not how Pendragons do things, Arthur! I will NOT allow my only son to disgrace the family name!” Uther shouted. Arthur stared at him a moment before tossing his napkin on the table and pushing his chair away.

    “Well, at least now I know how you really feel,” he bit out. “If you ever stop being ashamed of having a queer son, give me a call.”

    Without a second glance, he walked out of the dining room. He didn’t even realize he was shaking until he had to try three times to open his car door. 

-     -     -     -     -

    Arthur was in a mood, and he really didn’t want to deal with life right now. All he wanted was to have a good meal and toss back a few drinks and forget this evening even happened. Merlin said he would be home all night - maybe he would be down for dinner. His stomach did a flip-flop, as it usually did when he thought of his best friend and roommate. He would never admit it, but he had been harboring a crush on the man since their first year of university, when they collided outside of the cafeteria and Merlin had called him a clotpole. Needless to say, it had made living with him for two years in university and three years after graduation rather interesting. 

    “Merlin? I’m home!” Arthur slammed the front door behind him. The flat was quiet and seemingly empty. He moved into the living room, pulling off his coat and tossing it over the back of the couch. It landed on something solid. Curious, he went over and lifted the jacket. Beneath it was a grey designer handbag. Wait...wasn’t that  _ Morgana’s _ designer handbag? And that was Gwen’s favorite purple shawl lying next to it. What on earth? 

    “ _ Morgana _ ? You’d better have a damn good explanation for why the fuck you bailed on me tonight!” 

    He headed down the hall, surprised to hear the sound of giggling coming from Merlin’s room. Did he have a bloke in there? Merlin usually told Arthur if he was inviting a date over. The door was open, and he stepped in without a second thought. 

    He stopped in his tracks. 

    In the center of the room were his sister and her best friend, and they were fussing over another woman. They were all dolled up for a night out, if the dresses and the smell of perfume were anything to go by. Morgana was wearing her “power outfit”, as she called it: an emerald green satin dress that hugged every curve and a pair of sky-high black stilettos. Gwen had chosen a sweet lavender frock, and had left her curls wild, as they so often were in her youth. What gave him pause was the woman who stood in front of the full-length mirror. 

    She was tall and lithe, with mile-long legs covered in black stockings and ending in pointy red heels. Her thin figure was highlighted in the black crushed-velvet dress, which made her creamy white skin glow. Her hair was short but styled into messy waves across her forehead. In the mirror’s reflection, Arthur noted how pouty the lips were, painted as they were in blood red lipstick. There was something about her...she seemed so familiar….

    Morgana caught his eye in the mirror’s reflection and gasped. The other women’s eyes widened, and Gwen pulled the stranger away from the mirror.

    “Arthur!” Morgana said, hurrying to block the stranger. “You’re supposed to be at dinner with Uther!”

    “Yeah, well, that went to shit. Which you would know if you had actually been there!” 

    “I had other plans,” she placed her hands on her hips. “I am allowed to do that once and awhile.”

    “What the hell was so important that you had to leave me alone with Uther?”

    “I...Gwen and I...we’re going out…-”

    “And how did you even get in here? Where is Merlin?” Arthur asked, suspicious. Morgana’s key had been taken away after the Valentine’s Day Incident of 2016. 

    “He, uh, he went out,” Morgana stammered, glancing back at Gwen. Arthur’s eyes narrowed. He’d never heard her struggle for words before.

    “ _ Morgana _ …” 

    “Morgana, just tell him,” the strange woman spoke from the corner, brushing away Gwen’s hand. Her voice was deeper than Arthur would have imagined. In fact, it sounded an awful lot like…

    “Merlin?” Arthur stepped closer to the woman, eyes searching. 

    “Hello, Arthur.”

-     -     -     -     -

    Arthur sank into Merlin’s bed beside the man himself. A man currently wearing women’s clothing. Morgana and Gwen had quickly packed up their bags of make-up and hair products and left, Morgana shooting Merlin a meaningful glance that Arthur didn’t quite understand. 

    “It’s not really any of my business,” Arthur finally broke the awkward silence. 

    “You’re my best friend, Arthur,” Merlin shrugged. “I don’t ever want there to be secrets between us.” 

    “So...you enjoy wearing women’s clothing?” Arthur ventured, hoping to ease his friend’s discomfort.

    “Yes,” Merlin said softly. “Well, I’d never really worn women’s clothing until tonight.”

    “This was your first time? How did Morgana and Gwen know?” Arthur felt slightly hurt that Merlin would share this secret with his sister and friend, and not himself.

    “I never meant them to. You know how they like to drag me out shopping with them? Somehow they think gay equals shopping queen. Anyway, a few months ago we were in some department store and we passed the lingerie section. Morgana caught me checking out a pair of panties.” Merlin’s blush burned through the layer of foundation and powder that Gwen had applied quite tastefully to his skin. “She bullied me into confessing, and then she bought me the panties. It's sort of just progressed since then.”

    “But you said tonight was the first time…?”

    “The first time wearing clothing and makeup. I own a few pieces of lingerie that I wear on occasion.”

    “Ah.”

    “You probably think I'm a freak,” Merlin frowned, picking at a loose string on his duvet. 

    “You're not a freak, Merlin. Can I ask a question?”

    “Of course.”

    “Do you feel like a woman, or do you just like dressing like one? Is it a kink thing?” 

    “I'm not transgender, if that's what you mean. I do sometimes feel more feminine, but I always feel like a man, too. Does that make sense?” Arthur nodded. “There is an element of kink to it, but mostly I just enjoy the femininity of it.”

    “Okay.”

    “Okay? That's all you have to say?” Merlin looked near tears. 

    “Merlin,” Arthur turned to fully face him, taking Merlin's slender hands in his own. “You're my best friend and I love you. Nothing you could ever do would change that.” It was Arthur's turn to blush, and Merlin turned a strange look on him. 

    “Thank you, Arthur. I love you, too. I'm sorry I didn't share this with you sooner.”

    “I know now, and that's what matters,” Arthur assures him. “Are you hungry?” Merlin nodded. “Good, because I'm starving, and you're all dressed up with nowhere to go.”

    “Wait, you want to go out with me looking like this?”

    “Why not? You were going out with Morgana and Gwen.” 

    Merlin graced him with a beaming smile.

    As it turned out, Merlin was the most pleasant woman he had ever had dinner with. Arthur had chosen Merlin's favorite Italian restaurant, Sweet Basil, and he currently sat across from his best friend in a cozy little booth in a quiet corner of the place. As they waited for their meals to be delivered, they enjoyed a bottle of merlot Arthur had insisted on opening. He watched in fascination as Merlin sipped from his glass, licking red droplets from red lips. 

    He had eaten many a meal with Merlin over the years. They had eaten crappy cafeteria food in uni and greasy pizza every Monday night, and even sat eating cereal in their boxers that one time they'd forgotten to do the shopping  _ and _ the laundry in the same week. Most days they ate breakfast together before work and dinner together when they got home (dutifully ignoring that neither of them had much of a love life  _ or  _ social life). Merlin was by no means a dainty eater, but tonight...it was like he was a different person. He was demure and gentle and smiled prettily at Arthur from under darkened lashes. 

    Femininity suited Merlin, Arthur decided. Not many men could pull off both. Merlin in his natural state was all broad shoulders and lean limbs and chiseled facial features. He was all man, and that turned Arthur on to no end. But those broad shoulders contrasted nicely with the shape the velvet dress created with its cinched waist and flared skirt. Those lean limbs became graceful with the proper movements. His bone structure and plump lips, when made up with cosmetics, looked so  _ pretty _ …This new side of Merlin was giving Arthur some strange feelings. Maybe it was because he was also sometimes attracted to women? Or maybe it was just because it was  _ Merlin _ , and he had loved Merlin for so long.

    “You're beautiful,” he breathed, without thinking. But it was the truth.

    “You really think so?” Merlin asked quietly, reaching up to touch the clip-on earring that sparkled in the candlelight. 

    “I do.” Arthur took a breath. “I always have.” If Merlin could be vulnerable and honest, so could he.

    “Arthur?” Merlin’s smile faltered. 

    Their waiter chose that moment to bring their food, setting their plates in front them with a flourish before whisking away to the next table. 

    “How does it feel, finally dressing like that?” Arthur asked between bites lasagna. 

    “It feels good,” Merlin admitted. “It feels  _ right _ , like it's a part of me I finally get to really experience after so long.”

    “I'm happy for you.” Merlin smiled and took a bite of his pasta al pomodoro. He raised his eyes to Arthur and gave him an appraising look.

    “Are you going to tell me what happened with your father?”

    “Hmmm?”

    “You came home from dinner with Uther without actually eating dinner, and you were pissed at Morgana for bailing.”

    “Yeah,” Arthur sighed. “Uther told me I needed to give up the ‘phase’ I'm in and get married and have kids and uphold the family name and yada yada yada.” 

    “He still thinks your sexuality is a phase?” Arthur nodded. “Jesus, that sucks. I'm sorry, Arthur.”

    “I should be used to it by now, you know? He’s never been supportive of me, even after four years of being out. All he’s ever cared about is that there is some chance of me being with a woman. What hurt the most was when he basically implied that I wasn’t a Pendragon if I was with a man. That I was a disgrace to the family name.”

    “Well, if you ever need a woman for some event,” Merlin winked and Arthur laughed.

    “I might just have to take you up on that one day!” 

-     -     -     -     -

    Maybe the wine had gone to his head, or maybe it was the perfume Merlin was wearing that wafted toward him anytime he got too close. Maybe it was the perfect meal shared over candlelight. Or the fact that they had been letting their guards down all evening, laying themselves open and bare. Whatever it was, it had Arthur reaching for Merlin’s hand as they walked the last few feet to their flat. Merlin didn't say anything, didn't flinch or pull away. He only walked a little closer, filling the air they shared with that tantalizing French lavender fragrance. Arthur realized now that this was the fragrance Merlin called a “room spray” and would spritz around when he had a date come over. How long had he been waiting to wear his perfume?

    Arthur fumbled with his keys for a moment when they reached their front door, desperate to keep Merlin's warm fingers in his. Once the door clicked shut, Arthur turned to face his friend. Merlin smiled softly, red lips full and tempting.

    “What are we doing, Arthur?” When Arthur didn't respond, he continued. “Was this a date? Dinner between friends? Just a chance for me to wear pretty clothes, or for you to forget your father for a while?” Merlin shrugged, and Arthur became distracted by the dress slipping off his shoulder, revealing a red strap. “Arthur?”

    “I don't know what I'm doing, Merlin,” Arthur said honestly, shaking himself back to clear thinking. “You're my best friend. And I've always been content to keep it at that, because I could never risk losing you, or destroying our friendship. That would kill me.”

    Merlin was silent for what felt like an eternity. Finally, he whispered,

    “How long?” 

    “Since the day we met.” Arthur didn't have to ask what he meant. Merlin’s eyes widened. 

    “Why tonight?” 

    “You made me feel brave, Merlin. If you could share your deepest secret, and go out and actually  _ live _ it, then I could do the same.” And now he really did have to live it. He couldn’t come this far and not finish it. He took Merlin’s hands in his once more. “Merlin Emrys, I am in love with you and your beautiful, wonderful spirit. I don’t care anymore whether or not you feel the same, or if you’ll want to move out or stop being friends. I don’t care. I can’t keep it to myself anymore. I love you, and I am in love with you.”

    In every scenario Arthur had imagined over the years of Merlin learning of his true feelings, they always ended badly. He supposed it was a defense mechanism - if he went into it believing he would be rejected, he wouldn’t be too disappointed. Never in all of his years of imagining did he dare hope that his revelation would be well-received. Never did he let himself think that Merlin might reciprocate his feelings. 

    His eyes nearly popped out of their sockets when Merlin moved in close and planted his blood-red lips on Arthur’s. It took a moment for his brain to register the taste of lipstick, the plushness of Merlin's mouth, the slide of a hand up his chest. Merlin parted from him and reached up to wipe away the lipstick he'd smudged across Arthur's mouth. 

    “I love you too, Arthur Pendragon,” he whispered. “I never thought...I never hoped...but you're the only one I've ever really wanted.”

    “Have we both just been daft idiots?” Arthur laughed, breathless. He pulled Merlin into his arms and hugged him close, feeling their hearts thundering together. 

    “Morgana and Gwen have been pushing me to tell you for ages, but I just couldn't get up the courage.”

    “Hang on,” Arthur pulled back to look in Merlin's face. “Why did Morgana and Gwen know before me? What don't they know about you?”

    “They twisted it out me,” Merlin rolled his eyes. “They caught me sighing over you once in uni and wouldn't give me peace until I admitted it.” He got a mischievous sparkle in his eye. “Oh, and there are  _ plenty _ of things they don't know about me…”

    He leaned in and captured Arthur’s lips once more. Arthur moaned and wrapped his arms around Merlin, hands trailing up and down his back. He felt that red strap and fingered it, deepening the kiss to something filthy. The next time they broke apart for air, Merlin took his hand and pulled him down the hall to his bedroom. 

    “Unzip me?” He asked, turning to glance over his shoulder. Arthur obeyed, reaching up with shaking hands. He tugged the zip down, slowly revealing smooth, milky skin. A little lower and he was met with a lacy red band, more fair skin, more red lace…

    “Merlin…” Arthur breathed, unable to stop himself from nosing into Merlin's neck, inhaling the intoxicating fragrance of lavender and Merlin. The man sighed and shimmied a bit to let the dress slip off his shoulders. The fabric fell to the floor in a crushed velvet heap. He took a step forward and turned slowly to face Arthur.

    Fuck.

    How Arthur didn’t fling Merlin onto the bed then and there, he would never know.

    Merlin stood before him in nothing but heels and lingerie. Red, lacy lingerie that matched the color high on his cheeks. The bra that covered his chest was so sheer that Arthur could make out the darkened nipples beneath, pebbled as they were with excitement.  He wore a red lace thong, which did nothing to conceal the cock and balls that were threatening to escape their confines. A matching, high-waisted garter belt kept the black stockings from slipping down slim, muscular legs. And of course, those red heels...

    “Like what you see?” Merlin’s smile was shy, just hinting at self-consciousness. Words couldn't express just how much Arthur liked what he was seeing, so he abandoned speech and moved to pull the man into a smoldering kiss. When they broke apart some moments later, gasping for air, Arthur smirked and asked, 

    “Does that answer your question?”

    “Mmm,” Merlin licked his painted lips. “I think you're wearing too many clothes.” 

    He reached up and began unbuttoning his shirt, never taking his darkened eyes off Arthur’s. Button after button slipped from its hole, torturously slow. Burning fingertips followed, until they pushed the shirt off his shoulders all together. Next went the belt, then the trousers hiding the arse that Merlin was searching for. 

    At last, Arthur stood in nothing but a pair of tight (and getting tighter…) black boxer briefs. With a glint in his eye, Merlin took a turn around the man he would soon call his lover, basking in the image of Arthur’s golden body on display for him. Arthur watched him with hooded eyes, mesmerized by the way Merlin’s lithe frame moved in those heels. 

    “Wicked tease,” he muttered. Merlin stopped in front of him once again and smirked. 

    “Oh, you’ll get a tease.”

    Merlin reached up and slid a finger into his mouth, blood red lips creating an obscene picture as he sucked. Satisfied, he trailed his soaked finger down to encircle his own nipple. Arthur’s breath quickened as said nipple hardened even further, making Merlin sigh. He switched to the other nipple, biting his lip.

    Coming back to himself, Arthur stalked forward until the backs of Merlin’s knees hit the mattress. He pressed the man down into the duvet and climbed beside him. Arthur stole another painted kiss before trailing his lips down Merlin’s jaw, his neck, his shoulders. He found a nipple and lapped at it, loving the feel of the hardened bud underneath lace. Merlin moaned and bucked his hips, desperate for any kind of friction. 

    “Please, Arthur, oh please-”

    “Please what, Merlin?” Arthur smirked up at him. 

    “Please fuck me!” Merlin breathed, tangling a hand in Arthur's hair. 

    “Fuck,” Arthur growled. He made his way down to where Merlin’s cock was straining against its lace confines. When he took it into his mouth he could taste the salty precum soaking through the fabric. “Gonna fuck you with your little panties on.”

    “Fuck yes!” Merlin scrambled to his knees, giving Arthur a scorching kiss before bending over. “Please, need you now!”

    “So bossy,” Arthur smirked, reaching out to fondle Merlin’s pert little arse. He massaged the white globes a bit before spreading them apart, pushing the thong’s string to one side. He watched Merlin’s hole clench and unclench and he just couldn’t stop himself from diving in tongue first. 

    “Oh Gods, fuck! Yes, please, yes!” Merlin moaned, writhing and clutching at the sheets. Arthur continued licking and sucking and probing Merlin’s arsehole with his tongue and fingers, working more and more in until he was satisfied that Merlin could take him. He was just pulling himself away from the glorious arse before him when Merlin, still gasping, reached over to the bedside table. He procured a bottle of lube and a condom and went to work preparing Arthur’s cock.

    Sinking into Merlin’s hole was heaven. Hot and tight and slick and  _ Gods _ , Arthur couldn’t get enough. He tried to keep his thrusts slow and steady, desperate to keep from cumming in five minutes like a teenager, but Merlin had other ideas. He wrapped his legs around Arthur’s waist, pointy heels pressing into Arthur’s arse as Merlin met every thrust. 

    “So fucking big, ugh! Harder!” Merlin growled, biting Arthur’s earlobe. “Fuck!” Arthur ground down and Merlin shrieked, his lace-covered cock finally gaining the friction it needed. 

    “You want it harder?” Arthur pulled out and flipped Merlin over in one swift move. He grabbed the man’s hips and dragged him back, plunging right back into his fluttering hole. “I’ll show you harder!” He drove his hips faster, harder, until Merlin was a babbling mess on the mattress. He had long since stopped pushing back and was now allowing the force of Arthur’s fucking to grind him into the mattress. His cock was rock hard and leaking, pulsing with each pass over the lace. 

    “Gods, I’m so close!” Merlin cried. He spread his legs further and Arthur adjusted his angle. Merlin screamed as Arthur pounded his prostate again and again. “That’s it! Fuck! Right there!” 

    Arthur felt Merlin’s climax before he heard it. Merlin tightened around him, squeezing his cock like a vice. He watched as Merlin tore at the sheets, makeup smeared with sweat and tears. What pulled him over the edge was the sound of Merlin screaming his name over and over, begging Arthur to pump him full of his cum. 

    So Arthur obeyed. Oh, did he obey!

    After their breathing had calmed some, and the sweat was starting to dry on their skin, Arthur helped Merlin out of the bra and panties. He wiped the remnants of lipstick and eyeshadow from his face with a damp towel and tended to the hole that had taken quite a pounding. He tossed the towel onto the nightstand and pulled a sleepy Merlin into his arms. 

    “That was great, can we do that again?” Merlin yawned, snuggling his face into Arthur’s chest.

    “Maybe after we’ve taken a nap?”

     “Okay,” Merlin closed his eyes and sighed. “Arthur?”

    “Hmmm?”

    “Thank you for letting me be myself. And for loving me despite of it.”

    “I love you because of it,” Arthur corrected. “Everything that makes you Merlin is what makes me love you.”

    “I love you too, Arthur. All of you. Every part.” Merlin mumbled, cracking his eyes open long enough for Arthur to see them crinkle in a smile. 

     Arthur drifted to sleep wondering what kind of women’s clothing he would buy Merlin next.


End file.
